US2493961A - Wick for oil burners - Google Patents

Description

Jan. 1o, 195o A. M. GQODLOE 2,493,961

l IN Ill Il IIII III H Patented Jan. 10, l 1950 WICK FOR OIL BURNERS Alfred M. Goodloe, Upper' Montclair, N. J., as-

signor to Metal Textile Corporation, West Orange, N. J., a corporation of Delaware Application January 22, 1948, Serial No. 3,688

l1 Claim. (Cl. 67-69) This invention relates to an improved wick structure for use in oil stoves for cooking and heating Vand in other types of heating equipment and burners which burn liquid fuel.

In the use and operation of equipment of the wick fed liquid fuel burning type, such e. g. as an oil stove, an objectionable feature is the relatively long interval yof time which must elapse, after oil is admitted to the wick supply sump, before the Wick attains suiicient saturation to permit lighting and a rate of combustion of the oil adequate to heat the burner device sufficiently to provide the desired blue ame combustion effect. It has been observed that the elapsed time interval frequently runs from fifteen to twenty minutes. The delay involved is, to a considerable extent, due to the slow rate of capillary action possessed by Wicks of the Woven or braided yarn type which have heretofore been most commonly used.

Having the foregoing in view, it is an object of this invention to provide a novel wick structure which possesses a very high rate of capillary action perpendicularly therethrough with a minimum of delaying spread transversely of the wick structure, so that the oil moves very rapidly upward through the wick body, by the most direct paths from the bottom to the top thereof; the travel time required for upward movement of the oil from the bottom to the top of the wick bodyY being reduced to a matter of seconds.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel wick structure which, in addition to its possession of a very high rate of capillary action from bottom to top thereof, is formed from substantially non-combustible material which will not char, thus providing a wick of long life character, and one which avoids necessity for trimming or frequent cleaning.

' Other objects of this invention, not at this timer more particularly enumerated, will be understood from the following detailed description of the same.

Illustrative embodiments of this invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary face view of one form of wick structure made according to this invention; and Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional View thereof, taken on line 2-2 in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary face view of a modified form of the Wick structure according to this invention; and Fig. 4 is a verticalV cross-sectional View of the same, taken on' line ll-fl in Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary face view of another modified form of the wick structure of this invention; and Fig. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional View of the same, takenron line 6--6 in Fig. 5.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary face view of the wick body per se, overlying layers or strata of the material thereof being successively broken away to disclose successive underlying layers or strata of the same.

Similar characters of reference are employed in the above described views, to indicate corresponding parts. y

The wick structure of this invention is Well adapted for use in liquid fuel burners, such e. g.

as in the well known types of burners with which oil-stoves are equipped. In such oil-stove burn-k ers, the Wick rises between the walls of the burner from a sump supplied with a liquid fuel, usually kerosene oil. The bottom marginal portions of the wick are submerged in the oil content of the sump, and the oil rises through the wick body by capillary action to the top edge of the wick, where it is ignited. Initial combustion of the oil upon ignition of the wicl; functions to heat the burner walls, whereby thereafter the heat radiated from the latter is effective to vaporize the oil more rapidly at the top of the wick, so that the Vaporized oil thereafter burns with the desired blue flame of maximum heating efficiency and under conditions affecting substantially complete combustion. f

In the generic aspect of this invention, the body A of the wick'structure according to the invention is composed of a fiat mass or mat, of selected thickness, formed from spun glass fibers or laments. Said glass fibers or filaments are disposed to extend substantially Vperpendicularly between the bottom and top edges of the mass or mat. The mass or mat is built kup by a selected number v of superimposedlayers of strata of glass fibers orv filaments according to the ultimate thickness of wick body desired to be formed; such arrangement being illustratively shown in Fig. 'I by the superposed layers or strata It, II, I2, I3, I4 and l 5.V Preferably, the glass filaments or fibers comprising alternate layers or strata are respectively arranged in oppcsitely slightly oblique disposition, so that the laments or fibers of one layer or stratum cross those of adjacent layers or strata at very acute angles but slightly inclined from the perpendicular. Asa result of this, the mass or mat which forms the wick body possesses a pronounced grain running substantially perpendicular to and between the bottom and top edges of the wick body. The glass filaments or fibers of the stratified mass or mat, by which the wick body is formed, are suitably adherently bonded nular, oval or flatshapes of Wicks.

together against accidental separation, especially Where the lilaments or fibers intersect. The stratied wick body mass is characterized by the pos session of a multiplicity of minute interstices, which extend substantially parallel to the fibers or laments, so that the wick body is characterized by an interstitial grain perpendicular to the bottomV and top edges thereof. Owing to its perpendicular interstitial grain, the Wick body possesses a strong and rapidly acting capillary capacity in the direction of its height, but little or no capillary capacity in directions transverse to its height. By reason of this, the ascent of oil through the Wick body, from the bottom to the top thereof under capillary action, is extremely rapid and direct, and such rising movement of the oil is subject to substantially no delay dueto lateral or transverse spread of oil in the body.

The Wick body A, as composed of-glass bers I or iilaments in the manner above described, al-

though possessing considerable tensile strength in Adirections parallel to thelength of the fibers or ilaments, is of very low tensile strengthin directions transverse to said bers or la-ments,

and consequently the wick body is easily parted,

or broken Vunder transverse stresses or strains. To protect Ythe wick body A against disruption under transverse stresses and strains, Ithis invention further comprehends the provision of means to reenforce the wick body in resistance to such transverse stressesl and strains.

One arrangement of wick body reenforcing means, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, comprises .strips Voi flexible wire mesh, either woven or knitted wire'mesh.V Such strips of wire mesh areapplied to opposite ia'ces of the wick body A. Preferably said strips are arranged to provide a lower pair of comparatively narrow strips I6 which are disposed in mutually aligned relation parallel to and upwardly spaced from the bottom edge of the wick body, and an upper pair Yof like narrow strips ll which are disposed in shown in Figs. 3. and 4, comprises strips of preferably iiexible sheet metal I9, which are of less height .than the height of theY wick body A. Said strips i9 Yare respectively applied VAto opposite faces of the wick body in such'relation thereto as to leave marginal portions of said Wick body Y freely projectingbeyond the'bottom and top edges of said strips i9. The strips i9 are secured to the wick body, and one to the other, in any suitable manner, as e. g. bystaples 20 clenched therethrough. Y

Although it is preferable to apply the reenforcing means to both faces of the wick body A,

it will be obvious that the desired reenforcing effect may be, inv many cases, adequately obtained by application of the reenforcing means to a selected single face of the wick'body.

Both of the hereinabove described forms of reenforced wick bodies being flexible, the same may be optionally wrought to provideV either an- It will also be observed, thatsaid wick bodies A each possess freely projecting bottom and top marginal portions, and consequently the same are reversible so that either of said free edge portions may be utilized as the top or burner edge ofthe wick structure.

Figs. and 6 show another wick structure which includes the novel wick body A as formed from the matted substantially vertically extending glass fibers or laments above described, the Wick body A being embraced and supported byja holder member 2l' ofA U-shape in cross-section. Said holder member is preferably made from substantially rigid sheet metal, and the same is of less height than the height of the Wick body A, so that when the latter is inserted within the interior of the holder member it will stand upright between the walls of said members, with its upper marginal portion freely projecting from the member interior, whereby to provide an exposed burner edge. The bottom portionof the holder member 2i is provided with a multiplicity of suitably sized and spaced openings 22, through which oil, from the sump in which the wick structure stands in use, maygain access to the Vil() lower portion of thewick body A, 4and thereupon, byA capillary action, rise through the latter to the top .burner edge thereof. It vwill be understood that the holdermember and its contained wickV body may be formed' to provide a .Wick structure of selected shape, such e. g. as of annular, oval, or straight form.V Y

VIt will be obvious that the reeniorcing or holding means for the wick body A, as the case may be, is subject to considerable variation in kind, material and form, and that,fin its'br-oader aspects, the instant invention is vnot to be deemed to be limited to the preferred illustrative forms of these elements which have been above described. j

Having now described my invention, I claim: ln a wick structure for oil and like burners, an elongated Wick'body having its longitudinal margins disposed to provide bottom and tcp edges, said body comprising a str-atied mass of selected thickness formed by suitably united sup-erposed layers of substantially straight giass rilaments, the filaments of eachlayer being disposed in parallel relation with adjacent filaments closely abutting each other throughout their length whereby the layer is substantially equal in thickness to the diameter of a single iilament andv has no through interstices, the filaments of ad jacent layers being oppositely and suiflciently inclined in the substantial planes of the respective Ylayers so as to crossl at very acute angles and thereby proviclevertical vcapillary interstices'oi greater cross-sectional area for more rapid pullup power than'if the lilaments of adjacent layers were parallel and free to become enmeshcd.

' A ALFRED GOODLO. a

REFERENCES CITED v The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED I STATES PATENTS YWeaver Mar. 6,1945

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